News

First Female C-17 Aircraft Commander Retires

​Air Force Reservist Lt. Col. Debi Rieflin, 315th Operation Support Squadron
instructor pilot, smiles during her final (fini) flight in the C-17
Globemaster III, which was conducted with an all female crew Oct. 27, 2014 at JB Charleston, S.C. Air Force photo by SrA. Sandra
Welch.

BodyText

Air Force Reservist Lt.
Col. Debi Rieflin, the first female C-17 aircraft commander, retired Oct. 27
after 31 years in the Air Force and 21 years in the C-17’s cockpit, according
to a JB Charleston, S.C., release. In 1983
when Rieflin commissioned, the Air Force was only accepting 25 female pilots
out of 1,000 available spots. On top of that, only 15 of USAF’s 37 Globemaster
IIIs at the time that were not designated for combat and the 25 female pilots
were only eligible to fly the non-combat planes. "There were plenty of
skeptics out there, doubting that women should fly, let alone whether they
could or not," said Rieflin, a 315th
Operation Support Squadron instructor pilot. “I encountered biases along the way, but
refused to let them prove true.” For her final flight, Rieflin planned an
all-female crew to coincide with her retirement ceremony—which included another
C-17 flight with “her most cherished
stick mates,” states the release. “I never had the chance to be part of an
all-female crew during my career to date, and I wanted to share the experience
just once with the women I am so proud to be associated with," she said.